The crew of Grahame Wood, Sven Larsen & Paul Etock launched RNLI Lifeboat Hylton Burdon to reports from Humber Coastguard of a fishing vessel who had lost power and was drifting 1 mile East of Cullercoats.

The crew quickly located the fishing vessel and a tow was established. The vessel was taken to North Shields and once safely alongside the lifeboat returned to station.

Cullercoats Lifeboat was Re-housed and ready for service at 13:20

All units were then stood down and the crew of Cullercoats Lifeboat continued with their training.

All seven people were taken onboard the lifeboat and transported to Seaton Sluice as the conditions on the causeway were too rough to put the casualties ashore at the Lighthouse.

Tynemouth VLB were onshore at Seaton Sluice to meet the casualties and give them a lift back to their car.

Tynemouth Volunteer Lifebrigade were also tasked to speak with the first informant who was waiting at his car near the Fish Quay, North Shields. Members of Tynemouth VLB updated the coastguard with more information and the man was located on the North Tyne Pier by members of Tynemouth VLB, he was very cold and tired but other than that in good spirits after his adventure out to sea. The lifeboat was requested to head to this location and offer assistance. Once on scene the man was checked over by the lifeboat crew, once he was placed in a lifejacket he was then taken aboard the lifeboat which then transported him and his kayak the short distance to his friends who were waiting in the car park near the Fish Quay, North Shields.

The man admitted he had not expected it to get so cold so quickly once the sun had dropped behind the clouds. He was very grateful for the service both rescue organisations had given him and said he would invest in the correct equipment before going on the water again.

The RNLI would like to remind all persons going on the water in any form of craft that they should check local weather forecasts before they set out, a sunny day can quickly turn cold especially in March, to wear correct personal equipment for the activity you are doing and always wear a lifejacket when on the water.

Cullercoats RNLI’s lifeboat launched at 17:00 today to rescue a middle-aged couple who had been cut off by the tide at St Mary’s Island.

The lifeboat crew (Peter Clark, Scott Jones, Ben Bradshaw and Ross Dunn) were able to take the couple back to the mainland where members of the Tynemouth Volunteer Life Brigade were able to assist them back to their car. The couple expressed their thanks for the help they had received.

Lifeboat spokesman Brian Reeds said “We are concerned that people are visiting St Mary’s Island apparently unaware of the times when it is safe to do so. Visitors should consult the safe crossing tables before going over to the island. By definition, an island is cut off by the sea twice a day and we urge everyone to make certain that they will not be marooned.”

Saturday 24th March 2012.

Entrance £1 to include refreshments.

 Variety Stalls Including:

Raffle, Cakes, Tombola, Books, Toiletries, Souvenirs, Bits & Pieces.

The venue will be Cullercoats Comunity Centre, doors will open at 10am.

Cullercoats RNLI helmsman Robert Oliver is to be awarded one of the RNLI’s highest honours – the Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum – for the courage and seamanship he demonstrated when saving the life of a 12-year-old boy in Brown’s Bay.

The rescue on 26 October last year was carried out after the boy, who had been playing on Cullercoats promenade, was washed out to sea by a large wave. Helmsman Oliver and Crew Members Grahame Wood and Stephen Potts put themselves and their vessel at considerable risk to save the boy.

As time was of the essence, the lifeboat had launched without the fourth man who would normally be part of the crew. The position of the casualty – close to rocks and the promenade – combined with a heavy swell and confused sea state meant there was no margin for error. Helmsman Oliver had just one opportunity to manoeuvre the lifeboat alongside the casualty so that his two crew could pull the boy onboard.

The decision to award Helmsman Oliver with the Vellum was made at a meeting of the charity’s Trustee Committee on Wednesday (15 February). Crew Members Wood and Potts will receive a joint Letter of Thanks signed by the RNLI Chairman.

RNLI Deputy Divisional Inspector, North, Sarah Nimmo-Scott, said:

‘The selfless actions of the crew undoubtedly saved the boy’s life. Helmsman Oliver’s ability and the confidence he inspires in his crew are outstanding and testament to his knowledge and skill as a helmsman. The crew only had one chance to get it right – any other course of action could have led to a much less positive outcome.

‘Helmsman Oliver informed me that his legs were shaking after the service which, coming from this man, means that it was extremely dangerous and something out of the ordinary. He had to use all his considerable experience and nerve to effect a successful rescue and, under his guidance and leadership, his crew were willing to fully commit themselves to this challenging rescue situation.’

The boy, who was barely conscious when he was rescued, was transferred to hospital by helicopter and made a full recovery. He has since returned to the lifeboat station with his family to thank the crew.

As the lifeboat cleared the harbour the crew spotted a fire in the caves within Cullercoats Harbour, the crew reported this to the coastguard and Tynemouth VLB were asked to investigate the fire. The crew of Cullercoats Lifeboat then made VHF contact with the City of Nordic a Ro-ro cargo ship that was heading in to the River Tyne. The skipper of this vessel had been one of the people who had contacted the Coastguard reporting the fire and gave the lifeboat the bearing of the fire from the ship. The lifeboat positioned itself on this line and confirmed that the fire was on shore and was in line with a small local fishing boat on its moorings in the harbour, this gave the impression to the City of Nordic that it was the boat on fire due to the reflection of the flames from the fire in the caves on shore. The lifeboat carried out a quick search of the immediate area and confirmed there were no other vessels in the area the Lifeboat was then stood down.

Humber Coastguard asked Tynemouth VLB members to speak with the young lads who had set the fire in the caves and after that  the fire was extinguished, the skipper of the Nordic was thanked for his assistance and the call was put down to a false alarm with very good intent.

The Lifeboat was re-housed and ready for service at 19:45

Cullercoats RNLI helmsman Robert Oliver is to be awarded one of the RNLI’s highest honours – the Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum – for the courage and seamanship he demonstrated when saving the life of a 12-year-old boy in Brown’s Bay.

The rescue on 26 October last year was carried out after the boy, who had been playing on Cullercoats promenade, was washed out to sea by a large wave. Helmsman Oliver, aged 46, and crew members Grahame Wood (38) and Stephen Potts (25) put themselves and their vessel at considerable risk to save the boy.

As time was of the essence, the lifeboat had launched without the fourth man who would normally be part of the crew. The position of the casualty – close to rocks and the promenade – combined with a heavy swell and confused sea state meant there was no margin for error. Helmsman Oliver had just one opportunity to manoeuvre the lifeboat alongside the casualty so that his two crew could pull the boy onboard.

The decision to award Helmsman Oliver with the Vellum was made at a meeting of the charity’s Trustee Committee on Wednesday 15 February. Crew members Wood and Potts will receive a joint Letter of Thanks signed by the RNLI Chairman.

RNLI Deputy Divisional Inspector, North, Sarah Nimmo-Scott, said:

‘The selfless actions of the crew undoubtedly saved the boy’s life. Helmsman Oliver’s ability and the confidence he inspires in his crew are outstanding and testament to his knowledge and skill as a helmsman. The crew only had one chance to get it right – any other course of action could have led to a much less positive outcome.

‘Helmsman Oliver informed me that his legs were shaking after the service which, coming from this man, means that it was extremely dangerous and something out of the ordinary. He had to use all his considerable experience and nerve to effect a successful rescue and, under his guidance and leadership, his crew were willing to fully commit themselves to this challenging rescue situation.’

The boy, who was barely conscious when he was rescued, was transferred to hospital by helicopter and made a full recovery. He has since returned to the lifeboat station with his family to thank the crew.

RNLI Rescue Scenario

Cullercoats RNLI lifeboat station, 26 October 2011

At 3.48pm on 26 October 2011 the Deputy Launching Authority at Cullercoats lifeboat station received a call from the Coastguard requesting the launch of the lifeboat as they had been informed that a boy was being washed out to sea. He paged the crew.

At 3.51pm the inshore lifeboat launched on service. Robert Oliver was at the helm and he had two crew, Grahame Wood and Stephen Potts. It was considered that there was no time to wait for a fourth crewman to arrive.

The wind was southerly force 3-4 with good visibility. This did not mean that conditions were easy as there was a heavy easterly ground swell remaining from south easterly gales over the previous week. This resulted in seas of between 3-4 metres at the scene of the incident in Brown’s Bay a short distance north of Cullercoats lifeboat station.

Brown’s Bay has an outlying reef called Table Rocks which causes breaking water at the entrance to the bay, leaving only a narrow passage at the southern and northern extremities through which to access the area.

The casualty, a 12-year-old boy, had been wave dodging on the promenade with his brother when he was caught by a wave and washed into the sea. Onlookers had dialled 999 and members of Tynemouth Volunteer Life Brigade were on scene and keeping the boy in their sight until the lifeboat arrived.

On arrival on scene options were limited for Helmsman Oliver due to the shallow water and breaking seas. Because of his local knowledge he decided that the fastest course of action would be to enter the bay using the southern channel and try to pick up the boy on the way through. He knew he would only get one chance at this because the space available did not allow for re-positioning of the lifeboat and a veering down operation would take too long to set up.

The waves were confused as they were reflected off the promenade wall and met the broken water coming in over the reef. The casualty was being washed up and down in the heavy seas.

As Helmsman Oliver positioned the lifeboat to pick up the casualty a wave broke over the lifeboat and the boy vanished under the water. Seconds later he came up again alongside and the crew quickly pulled him to safety. He was barely conscious and limp. The casualty had been struggling to keep his head above water and the lifeboat crew observed that he spent approximately 60% of the time under the water. Had they not succeeded at this attempt the outlook was not good for the boy.

Helmsman Oliver manoeuvred the boat out through breaking seas via a narrow channel at the north of Brown’s Bay between the promenade and Table Rocks. Despite the risk of damage by this course of action, this was the only exit route from the bay as turning round in the heavy seas would have been impossible.

On the short transit back to the lifeboat station the crew checked the boy and he was found to be conscious but very cold. RAF Rescue Helicopter 131 was in the local area and informed the lifeboat crew that they were diverting to Cullercoats to airlift the boy to hospital as this would be quicker than road ambulance.

On arrival at station the casualty was taken into the changing room and whilst deciding whether to re-warm him he collapsed but did not lose consciousness. He was wrapped in blankets, placed in the recovery position and given free flow oxygen until the arrival of the RAF winchman.

Due to it being high water the helicopter was unable to land on the beach so a low level winching operation was carried out and the boy was taken to Wansbeck Hospital by helicopter. He spent a night and day in hospital and made a full recovery. He has since been back to the station with his family to say thank you.

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